5:00 P.m. in the Business’s Office

The Employment Standards Act (ESA) uses to workers.

An employee consists of a person who:

– performs work for an employer for wages

– supplies services to an employer for earnings

– receives training from an employer, if the ability in which the person is being trained is a skill used by the employer’s workers

– is a homeworker

– was a staff member

Effective March 21, 2024, a worker consists of a person who performs work throughout a trial duration for a company, if the abilities being assessed during the trial duration are skills utilized by the company’s workers or could be utilized by workers if there are no other workers. For employment example, where a company of a dining establishment asks a job prospect to work a trial shift waiting tables to show their ability to carry out the task, even where no employment deal has been made to that prospect, the person is an employee under the ESA.

The ESA does not apply to independent specialists, volunteers or other individuals who are not covered under the ESA. An individual thought about a staff member may be entitled to rights such as:

– minimum wage

– overtime pay

– public vacations

– trip with pay

– notice of termination or termination pay

Under the ESA, companies are not allowed to deal with staff members covered by the Act as if they are not employees. If a company misclassifies a worker in this way, an employment standards officer can release a notice of breach that leads to a penalty, a prosecution or both against the company.

Please note, the ESA supplies minimum standards just. Some workers may have higher rights under an employment agreement, employment collective arrangement, the common law or employment other legislation.

Discover more about worker rights under the ESA.

How to inform who is an employee

The relationship in between an individual and business (or individual) they are working for determines whether the person is a staff member and entitled to securities under the ESA. An individual might be considered a worker under the ESA when at least some of the following explains the relationship:

– the work the specific carries out is a fundamental part of business

– business decides:- what the individual is to do

– just how much the individual will be paid

– where and when the work is performed

If you’re uncertain who is a staff member under the ESA, call the Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development’s Employment Standards Information Centre at:

– 416-326-7160

at 1-800-531-5551

TTY 1-866-567-8893

The Information Centre can assist callers in several languages. They can provide basic info about who is a staff member but can not supply guidance.

If you’re still unsure whether somebody is an employee, please talk with a legal representative.

How to inform who is an independent specialist

An independent professional is someone who stays in business for themselves. An individual might be thought about an independent specialist, and not covered by the ESA, when a minimum of some of the following uses:

– business can end the individual’s contract for services, but can not discipline the individual

– the individual:- has the opportunity to make a profit and employment has a danger of losing money from the work

– figures out how, when or where the work is carried out

– chooses whether to subcontract some of the work

Example

Fariah works as a consumer service agent for a sales business. She should work Monday to Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. in the service’s workplace. She utilizes business’s telephones and computers. She is paid $25.50 per hour. Her work contract does not have an end date, although her employer can fire or discipline her for poor efficiency. Her employment agreement states that she is an independent contractor and so she does not receive overtime pay, employment holiday pay or public holiday pay.

Fariah thinks she might actually be an employee and might be entitled to overtime pay, getaway pay and public holiday pay. She sues with the Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development.

A work standards officer examines her claim. The officer looks at the relationship in between Fariah and the sales company and discovers that she is a staff member

It does not matter that Fariah signed the work agreement stating that she is an independent professional since the truths reveal she is an employee.

The employment standards officer orders the sales organization to:

– pay Fariah the overtime pay, holiday pay and employment public vacation pay that she was entitled to as a worker.

– orders the company to issue wage statements and keep records

Employee or independent professional: Common misunderstandings

A person might be considered a staff member even if:

– the private and business concur (orally or in writing) that the individual is an independent contractor. It is the relationship in between the private and the company (or individual) that matters, not the label that is provided to it

– the person:- charges the balanced sales tax (HST).

– sends billings to the organization.

– uses their own vehicle for work purposes.

Volunteers

Volunteers are not employees under the ESA. However, the reality that somebody is called a “volunteer” does not identify whether that individual is an employee and entitled to the securities of the ESA.

The main aspects that figure out whether someone is a volunteer or a staff member are how much:

– business (or individual) benefits from the person’s services.

– the specific views the arrangement as being in pursuit of a living.

In family-run services, the concern will frequently be whether the person is supplying services in pursuit of a living or in service of the household.

If the person is providing services to the household, instead of services in pursuit of a living, that individual is most likely to be a volunteer.

The reality that no earnings were paid does not always suggest that someone is a volunteer. The truth that there was some kind of payment does not always mean somebody is a staff member. For instance, an honorarium may have been paid, instead of wages.